Tag Archives: Budget

House Higher Education Talks Tuition and Budget

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The House Higher Education Committee today held a work session that focused on tuition and the Governor’s proposed 2010 supplemental budget.

Representatives from the Governor’s Office along with the Higher Education Coordinating Board and the Washington Student Association (WSA) provided invited testimony to the Committee regarding their concerns and hopes about tuition policy and budget this session.

George an Evergreen student shared his personal story with legislators along with several other students organized through WSA.

Legislators raised questions regarding higher education costs, the level of budget reductions passed in the 2009 session, and efforts towards worker retraining.

Governor Shares Her Vision of the State for the Next Year

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Governor Gregorie addressed the state this afternoon in her annual State of the State. In her address she called out the challenges Washington has and continues to face combined with solutions that Washington should explore to move the state forward.

Gregoire argued that jobs are the way out of this recession for Washington and Washingtonians. She proposed the creation of 40,000 new jobs this year.

How will this be done? By attracting $2 billion in investments, building on a long tradition in Washington of attracting capital and intellectual investments, especially in areas such as biotechnology, health care, and clean energy.

In addition, the Governor is supporting an employee tax credit for each full-time hire a business makes, an investment in a green building program focused on retrofitting, and efforts in streamlining permit processes.

Governor Gregoire also spoke to streamlining government. Included in this effort is the elimination of over 70 boards and proposed legislation to eliminate several more. In addition, she proposed merging state agencies and moving programs to better align missions and service to citizens and communities.

Finally, she asked the Legislature to budget with Washingtonians in mind. She urged the Legislature to meet Washingtonians half way and reach out to the vulnerable, especially those who need the most.

Governor Gregoire stated that the balanced budget proposed in December closes the door to higher education to 12,300 students. She called for the restoration of the State Need Grant, the provision of tuition setting flexibility to ensure the competitiveness of higher education institutions, and the appropriation of dollars for worker training at the community and technical colleges.

She closed by stating that she plans to release a budget this afternoon that includes revenue options to offset the all-cuts budget released in December, which will include federal dollars, tax revenues, or a combination of both.

Governor Gregoire’s State of the State address

2010 Supplemental Session Begins in Washington

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The 2010 supplemental session began today in Olympia. A quick “101” regarding the Washington Legislature. Each even-numbered year the Washington State Legislature meets for sixty days to make technical corrections, introduce policy bills needed, and rebalance the buget if required. This session all of these are topics of discussion.

This week the focus of the appropriations committees (i.e. Senate and House Ways & Means, House Education Appropriations) will be a review of the Governor’s proposed supplemental budget, released in mid-December.

In addition, the higher education policy committees plan to tackle several critical issues impacting Washington’s institutions of higher learning, including high skills and wages, tuition policy, budget, governance, and technology.

Stay tune for the latest news from The Hill…..

Student Trustee Dixon McReynolds Holds Town Hall on Budget Reductions and How Students Can Get Involved

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Yesterday’s meeting to discuss Evergreen’s response to the Governor’s proposed 2010 supplemental budget was attended by a mix of students and staff. Dixon McReynolds, student trustee, spoke to the dire situation all Washingtonians find themselves in at the mid-point of the 2009-2011 biennium. McReynolds, who spent the 2009 session as an intern in Senator Adam Kline’s office and will serve during the 2010 session as an aide for Senator Debbie Regala, has a broad range of knowledge on legislative issues and a lot of experience when it comes to navigating the complicated venue of state government. His goals this session are to engage effectively with students during the budget-writing process so that when it comes time for the Board of Trustees to vote on Evergreen’s final budget, he has as much input as possible from the student body.

Also present at the meeting was Geoduck Student Union (GSU)  liaison Josie Jarvis, who offered to connect any interested students with the Washington Student Association (WSA). The WSA is a lobbying service provided to the student body and paid for by student fees, and each participating institution of higher learning has student representatives to WSA from student government organizations. This year Evergreen’s liaison is GSU representative Colin Bartlett. Josie encouraged students at the town hall meeting to approach her if they are interested in participating in WSA’s lobby efforts this year. WSA’s website is http://www.wastudents.org

Evergreen’s Executive Director of Operational Planning and Budget Steve Trotter was on hand to translate some of the more esoteric elements of the budget, and he and Director of Governmental Relations Julie Suchanek offered their support and knowledge to students interested in the budget process.

A few people present indicated their lack of exposure to the legislative process, and specifically shared their hesitance at visiting the capitol. Students interested in contacting their legislators have the following resources available:

  • http://leg.wa.gov – find information about bills, Senators & Representatives, committee hearings and other issues.
  • Email & phone – if you live in Olympia, your legislators are most likely Senator Karen Fraser (D), Representative Brendan Williams (D), and Representative Sam Hunt (D). Their offices are in Olympia, and their staff are all friendly and helpful if you need more information. Here’s how to contact them:

Senator Karen Fraser–  fraser.karen@leg.wa.gov website

404 Legislative Building
PO Box 40422
Olympia, WA 98504-0422
(360) 786-7642
Fax: (360) 786-1999

Representative Brendan Williams – williams.brendan@leg.wa.gov – website

132F Legislative Building
PO Box 40600
Olympia, WA 98504-0600
(360) 786-7940

Representative Sam Hunt – hunt.sam@leg.wa.gov – website

438B Legislative Building
PO Box 40600
Olympia, WA 98504-0600
(360) 786-7992

  • If you do not live in Olympia, you can use the legislative web service to find your representatives
  • What should you say in an email? An email to your legislator should include your name, address, phone number, the issue or bill number that you are concerned about (if your issue is budget cuts, make sure you are specific about which services or programs you do not want cut).
  • What should you say if you call? All Washingtonians can call the legislative hotline at 1-800-562-6000 (TTY for Hearing Impaired 1-800-635-9993) to let their legislators know how they feel about issues . If you would like to speak instead with a member of your representative’s staff, you can call their office. Let them know what issue you are calling about, how you feel about it, and what if any recommendations you have as alternatives. If you want to schedule an appointment to speak to your legislator, call their office and their staff will help you. 

Assembly Days at the State Legislature

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The 61st Legislature convened last week for the last time before the regular session begins in January. Capitol campus was buzzing with activity as representatives, staff, lobbyists and interest groups packed parking lots and committee hearing rooms to start the very difficult conversation of governance in 2010.

Part of that discussion is with the Higher Education Coordinating Board (HECB), which recently completed Tuition and System Design studies for submittal to the legislature. At a November 19 meeting at Renton Technical College, representatives from the public institutions of higher learning asked for more input in the tuition policy report, and met last week to draft a new proposal. The contents will push for a higher commitment from the State of Washington to fund higher education and improve access to all students.

Paramount in this process is the conversations between stakeholders and decision makers, and on Thursday several lawmakers attended a presentation and breakfast organized by the United Faculty of Washington State and Washington Student Association. Also in attendance were representatives from K-12 and a handful of Evergreen students. Suggestions were solicited on how to deal with the challenge of the budget crisis, and legislators offered creative solutions. The discussion also centered around how to keep Washington competitive in the larger higher education community.

On Friday Evergreen Provost Don Bantz testified in front of  the House of Representatives Committee on Higher Education on the HECB’s System Design study. Don was part of the work group that created the study, and he emphasized Evergreen’s unique position among state institutions while speaking highly to the content and quality of the report.

Assembly Days wrapped up just in time for Governor Gregoire’s press conference this morning in which she proposed the first of the several budgets the State of Washington will consider in the coming months.

November 19 Revenue Forecast Places Washington’s Shortfall at $2.6 Billion

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The Economic and Revenue Forecast Council convened the morning of November 19th for a sobering task: outlining the depth of our state’s budget crisis. State Economist Dr. Arun Raha characterized the situation as a “revenue-less recovery,” pointing out that, while the recession ended during the second quarter of this fiscal year, consumer confidence & spending are still too weak to adequately bolster our economy. Since sales and Business & Occupation taxes constitute the bulk of our revenue, the economic downturn has left Washington vulnerable.

Forecast estimates include an additional $760 million in revenue loss for the 2009/2011 biennium since Septemember’s forecast, a combination, according to Dr. Raha, of $97 million lost during the last two months alone, and a $663 million loss in projected taxable activity for the remainder of the biennium.

This information comes with only a handful of working weeks left before the state legislature convenes for a supplemental session. What this shortfall – and subsequent forecasts – spell for Evergreen’s budget is uncertain now, and will remain so until early 2010, after the Governor has proposed her supplemental budget. From there, state legislators will work in their respective houses to reach agreement about how the budget will look before the legislative session comes to a close in March.